All The Best
by arenaCeous
Summary: help·less;  help-lis   –adjective 1. unable to help  oneself; weak or dependent.   2. deprived of strength or power; powerless; incapacitated.  Everyone has their reasons for getting married.


**A/N: **Hi folks, a lot of you have shown interest in this Harry/Ron/Hermione thing so I've decided to write another little one-shot for it. It can be stand-alone but I do recommend reading _A Simple Question_ and _A Matter of Comparison_ as well. It doesn't matter what order you read them in, just know that they all tie in together

This was written for DramioneLurver's Reasons to Get Married Competition. The reason given to me was "Because they're helplessly in love."

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any rights to the Harry Potter franchise. Enjoy!

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"Marry me,"

She stood unmoving, her mouth hung open in shock as she stared at tiny little box in front of her on the kitchen table. Ron must have planted it there when her back was turned. It was a quiet Sunday evening at the Burrow; Molly and Arthur had everyone over for weekly dinners on that night. It was their week to clean up while everyone else retired to the living room for some drinks. Almost two years had passed since the fall of Voldemort, yet the echoes of war and the pain of their losses were still fresh in everyone's heart. Everywhere you looked there were marriage and birth announcements as everyone tried to take advantage of their newfound peace; tried to fill the void of those lost with new life. She had been expecting this, when her and Ron had finally gotten their act together in the midst of the final battle, she knew they had sealed their fate. They were supposed to be together, everyone knew that. It was only a matter of time before they got married, but that didn't make his proposal any less surprising.

"We're only _twenty_," were the first words out of her mouth after she had finished gaping like a fish. Her eyes instantly snapped from the box to his face, afraid she had hurt his feelings. Instead she was met with his handsome smile as he laughed, taking the box in his left hand while using his right to grasp hers. His thumb flicked open the box and Hermione gasped at the sight of the most beautiful ring in the world. It was small and inexpensive, but simple, elegant and perfect for her.

"I knew you would react like that," he said softly, releasing her hand so he could take the ring out of the box. "I know we're only twenty, but next year we'll only be twenty-one and the year after that we'll only be twenty-two. I would have asked you marry me when we were seventeen had their not been a war going on." Placing the box on the table he held the ring between his thumb and his forefinger and got down on one knee. He then grasped her left hand lightly and touched it to his lips. "I wanted to ask the very _second_ the war was over; but I wanted to get my life in order first. I wanted us to have jobs, I wanted to buy you a house and give you everything you deserve."

Her hand trembled in his, as he continued speaking. She could barely process the words coming out of his mouth. His speech was long, and obviously prepared. He was nervous, but it made him that much more adorable.

"Now we have all those things, so I'm asking you to marry me."

She stood looking down at his face in silence for the longest time, willing herself to say yes, nod, _anything. _This was an easy answer; in fact the answer had been decided years ago, so why couldn't she say it?

She knew why.

Although she'd never admit it out loud, there was one thing keeping Hermione from committing herself to Ron for the rest of her life. That thing had jet-black hair, emerald green eyes and lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead.

_Harry._

Every time she saw him, she felt a tingling feeling spread throughout her stomach. Her heart raced a little faster, and her breath quickened. She had never reacted this way to him before, never in all their time at Hogwarts. She couldn't even pinpoint the exact moment where everything had changed; when she began feeling more than friendship for her other bestfriend. She wasn't even sure if he cared the way she did; perhaps all she was, was a sister to him. Yet that could never change the way she felt.

Could she really do it? Say no, and destroy years of friendship over a _feeling_; a feeling that, as far as she knew, was one-sided and unrequited. Knowing the answer to that question, she finally opened her mouth to answer Ron.

"_Yes."_

Harry would be fine, he always was. He had been through enough tragedies and seen enough deaths that Hermione did not dare to presume this would hurt him in the slightest. He didn't need her, not the way Ron needed her. Hell, she didn't even know if he reciprocated her feelings; all the silent moments shared between them could have been made up in her head. Had he cared the way she thought he did, then he would have fought for her.

Slipping the ring on her finger, Ron shouted with joy, louder than he thought possible, before leaping to his feet. He then pulled her into a bone-crushing hug as his friends and family all filtered into the room, wide smiles spread across their faces. Everyone knew of his intentions to propose that day and they were all ecstatic. Ron's eyes scanned the through the faces of his loved ones, looking for the one person he wanted to see most.

Harry was the last one to enter the kitchen, he had deliberately taken his time getting up while everyone else had jumped to their feet and rushed towards the sound of Ron's voice. Ron had confided in Harry about his plans, and the joyful sound that traveled to Harry's ears only meant one thing.

_She said yes._

He watched Ron kiss the top of Hermione's head and released her only to place a firm, yet loving kiss on her lips. He wondered what it would be like to kiss her like that, to promise her a life and a future without so much as a word; just a kiss. Ron looked straight into Harry's eyes and smiled. "She said yes mate!"

Hermione felt as if a cinderblock had just been thrown straight at her gut. She reluctantly turned around and prayed that Ron had not addressed whom she thought it was. Sure enough, prayer failed her once again as she found herself staring face to face with her other best friend. For a fraction of a second Hermione swore she could see pain and betrayal flash through his emerald green eyes. However the moment was gone as fast as Hermione blinked and before she knew it he had his arms wrapped tightly around the both of them muttering strings of congratulations to the happy couple.

.

.

"Why did you say yes?" Hermione jumped in her seat, so startled that she nearly knocked over her bottle of ink. After the excitement had worn down Ron and Arthur decided to go for a walk and discuss their plans for the future; this left Hermione free to hide out in Ginny's old room, the room that had practically been hers as well ever summer. While everyone else had retreated back to the living room, she snuck away to get some much-needed quiet time; only to be interrupted by the last person she wanted to see. She had not expected that

"Why are you asking?" He shrugged casually as he tried to peer at what appeared to be a pro-con list. He barely got a glimpse of it however, before Hermione quickly flipped it over. Placing her quill down she shifted in her seat so she was facing him and stared intently into his eyes. Perhaps he'd say something, reassure her that she wasn't just imagining all the vibes he had been giving off. Hermoine knew she was less than pleased over the engagement. Secretly she hoped he would give her a valid enough reason to call it off; because without one, there was no reason to _not_ marry the man who would do anything for her.

_Because I'm in love with you_, he thought silently; forcing the words back down his throat before they got a chance to leave his mouth "I just want to make sure you're doing it for the right reasons; and not just because it's expected of you. Ron's my bestfriend too 'Mione, it's my job to make sure he doesn't get hurt."

Her heart sank further into her stomach; of course this was never about her. . For a brief moment she disillusioned herself into thinking there had been something between them, when all this time his concerns had merely been about Ron. She turned away from him, afraid she may cry, and began packing up her belongings. "Don't be absurd Harry, I'm not going to hurt him," she snapped, a little more harsh than she had intended. It was the only way to mask the hurt she felt from being evident in her tone. "I said yes because I'm in love with him"

"Marriage is a big deal Hermione," he said seriously while grabbing her wrist in order to cease all her activity. "Not all people in love get married, there has to be more than that. People fall out of love all the time." He couldn't believe the words that were coming out of his mouth. This was not about Ron's feelings at all, no matter how many times he told himself that. He was practically trying to sabotage the relationship of two people he loved most in the world. Harry stared into her captivating brown eyes and he knew they would lead to his undoing. He swore to Ron two years ago that he had loved her like a sister, but he didn't know if he could live with that lie for the rest of his life. Then again, Harry didn't know if he could live with the guilt caused by destroying his bestfriend's relationship for the rest of life.

Hermione was fuming. How dare he do this to her, t was as if he didn't want her to marry Ron at all. Did he expect her to live out her years alone? "Fine Harry," she hissed, "I said yes because I am _helplessly_ in love with him, and I know he feels the same way about me." She was met with a look of confusion, so she continued. "You don't get to choose who you love Harry," her tone softening as she tried to justify her reason to herself, just as much as she was to him, "It was practically written, the moment he and I met on the train. He means _everything_ to me. Our love has spanned years, suffered through loss and bloodshed, we never see eye-to-eye and frankly, he can be so ignorant and hot-headed that I want to wring his neck on a daily basis," she yanked her wrist from his "But in spite of that all, my love for him persists; and I do not have the strength nor the power to fight that kind of love, not without a damned good reason to." She rose to her feet and finished collecting her belongings before she began walking towards the door, not even bothering to say goodbye.

"Hermione," he called out. She stopped but did not turn to look at him in fear of succumbing to her tears. "Your answer didn't change; just the amount of words you used did. You're telling me that you said yes because you're in love with him, that's it?"

"That's pretty much the gist of it, only I can't help it."

_Tell her she can._

_Tell her you love her. _

"Then I'm wish you all the best," he lied through his teeth.

She bowed her head and said nothing as she walked out the door.


End file.
